Macle

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Macle formed by the merger of three pyrite crystals. Pyrite 60608.jpg
Macle formed by the merger of three pyrite crystals.

Macle is a term used in crystallography. [1] It is a crystalline form, twin-crystal or double crystal (such as chiastolite). It is crystallographic twin according to the spinel twin law and is seen in octahedral crystals or minerals such as diamond and spinel. The twin law name comes from the fact that is commonly observed in the mineral spinel. [2] A version with five units about a common axis is called a fiveling. [3]

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Macle is an old French word, a heraldic term for a voided lozenge (one diamond shape within another). [4] Etymologically the word is derived from the Latin macula meaning spot, mesh, or hole. [5]

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See also

References

  1. Lewis, William James (1899). A Treatise on Crystallography. Michigan: University Press. p. 461.
  2. Collins, Joseph Henry (1878). Mineralogy. With ... Illustrations, Volym 1. National Library of Scotland. p. 120.
  3. Marks, L D; Peng, L (2016-02-10). "Nanoparticle shape, thermodynamics and kinetics" . Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter. 28 (5) 053001. doi:10.1088/0953-8984/28/5/053001. ISSN   0953-8984.
  4. Parker, James. "A glossary of terms used in heraldry". www.heraldsnet.org. Retrieved 10 January 2025.
  5. "macula noun". www.merriam-webster.com. Merriam-Webster . Retrieved 10 January 2025.